Rolling Mist, Morning Wind
by Adyen
Summary: A RanmaRayearth crossover. It was in the Rayearth section, but I realized the story focuses more on Ranma. We all know there are three Magic Knights. What if the third isn't who we thought it was? How would that affect Ranma? Slowly progressing!
1. Prologue

Everyone knows of the story. Three Magic Knights were summoned to Cephiro to save the land, and defeat the unstable Pillar. Then later, they returned to once again save the mystical land, this time by the leader picking up the mantle of being the Pillar, thus stabilizing the world by changing it.  
  
Fire, Water, and Wind. The three elements with the three Mashin, also named Rune Gods, combine to create Lexus, the ultimate force on Cephiro. Once merged, not even the Pillar could withstand its power.  
  
Shidou Hikaru the Pillar and Fire Knight, Ryuuzaki Umi the Water Knight, and finally the Wind Knight. Most of the time, the legend names her to be Hououji Fuu, but in this world, it was not to be her that becomes the Wind Knight. In fact, it was a young girl who had finally managed to put aside the grief and return to living in society, but that did not change the result of their presence.  
  
As the events in Cephiro finally settled down, the three Knights returned to their world and continued their lives, keeping in contact and sharing their lives. A few years passed with no one finding out of their duel identities until after five years, when a certain person happened upon something that nobody has noticed before, blurring the lines between Earth and Cephiro...  
  
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Rolling Mist, Morning Wind A Ranma/Rayearth crossover idea by Adyen (senranda@yahoo.ca)  
  
I'd like to state now that I have only a tentative idea on how to continue this. It was just an idea that just popped up in my head, and I couldn't get it out of my mind. I'll probably get two or three chapters out for this, but then I'll be stumped. I encourage anyone to email me and pick this up as soon as possible.  
  
You might notice I took a bit of a creative license here. Personally, I've seen both the OVA and the two original series, and found that the OVA... did not meet my standards. However, that doesn't mean I can't steal stuff from it. Course, since I didn't like it, I won't be using any, if at all, from the OVA. 


	2. Rabbit's Hole

Rolling Mist, Morning Wind A Ranma/Rayearth Fanfic by Adyen (senranda@yahoo.ca)  
  
Well, here's chapter one. I don't know when I'll write a second chapter, but I'll work on it when I have time.  
  
For the sake of the fic, I will be dropping all the 'san' and 'kun' etc. in speeches because they'd be confusing for a lot of readers. However, I'll still be using the Asian way of naming, which means it's last name first, then first name.  
  
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While Saotome Ranma was not the happiest guy in the world (and he seldom is *happy* at all), right now, he felt that he was flying at the top of the world (which is not to be confused with being punted into LEO by things like fiancées or other martial artists). It's been slightly more than a month since he learnt of the Yami- and Umi-sen-ken, two forbidden schools of martial arts created by his glutton of a father, Genma. And it has been about two weeks since he's stolen the scrolls from his father's packs and replaced them with look-a-likes from the outside, but blanks in the inside.  
  
Having used the excuse that he needed to train alone after his latest battle, he quickly read through the scrolls, but found to his dismay that it was more complicated than it first seems. By the end of the month, he learned less than half of both scrolls, but promised himself that he'll continue training in them as soon as he has the chance.  
  
Leaving his training area before sunrise, he took the time to slowly explore the empty roads leading to Nerima, enjoying the silence of the roads. Occasionally, a flicker of light would appear, showing that there is still life in the city, even that early in the morning. By the time the sun started to rise, he had entered the Nerima ward and miraculously, no-one had tried to challenge him or got him wet with cold liquids.  
  
As he walked towards the Tendo Dojo, he thought about what he was going to do about his fiancée(s) problem. It's obvious that none of them would answer to a simple 'no', but he didn't have the heart to just leave them hanging forever. Escaping isn't much of an option, since both the Amazons and Uyko would just follow him; nor would Soun or Genma allow him to just escape from their grasps. It didn't take a genius to know that he's in trouble, and Ranma certainly isn't completely stupid. Ignorant: yes; stupid: no.  
  
Turning a corner, he noticed some woman turning into an alleyway, carrying some bags with her. Not completely sure why someone else was shopping that early in the morning, he was about to keep moving when he suddenly noticed a bright glow of jade colored light coming from the alleyway. Alarmed and more than a bit curious, he quickly dashed to where the light was coming from, sliding to a stop just beside the wall and tipping over a few trashcans.  
  
Looking down the alleyway, he immediately noticed the large glowing hoop that stood just larger than a normal person, pulsing with power that Ranma had never seen or felt before. In the center of the portal was the woman he had saw entering the alleyway with her head turned back to investigate the noise. When she recognized who it was, her eyes widen in surprise and she held out an arm as if to tell him to leave, but just seeing who was in the light managed to spur Ranma into action without thinking.  
  
Like an arrow, he practically *flew* at the slowly fading figure and shrinking portal, jumping diagonally and into the portal just moments before it completely closed on him. Landing face first into the floor and sliding forwards, he crashed head first into a large stone. The last thing he heard before blacking out was a voice he knew very well saying, "Oh my!"  
  
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When Ranma regained consciousness, the first thing he noticed was that he felt stronger than he ever felt before. That realization came at the same time as a sharp pain on his head where he crashed directly into a stone slab. Ruefully thinking that his head may actually be as tough as rock, he sat up and glanced around.  
  
"I don't think I'm in Nerima anymore." Ranma commented, firmly and meticulously destroying the urge to yell 'Where am I now?!'.  
  
The surrounding area is not the concrete and asphalt of Tokyo, but rather large and green trees that seems to open up to the clearing he's currently in. In the middle, there are eight large yet short pillars of rock placed in a circle, probably where he had first appeared.  
  
Checking himself, he realized that his travel pack was set off to a side, leaning against one of the stone pillars. Scrambling to it, he quickly checked through his stuff and to his relief, everything of value to him was still there. He sighed and was about to pick it up when he suddenly heard a female voice saying, "Oh, Ranma. You're awake."  
  
Upon hearing that voice, he suddenly remembered just *how* he got there. He quickly spun around, letting go of his pack and leaving it on the floor, to face the reason why he dashed through that portal.  
  
She was dressed differently than before. Instead of wearing her normal white dress, she was wearing some sort of decorative armor with a long flowing cape. As the wind ripped through, making her long hair, tied with some sort of thin green line, and cape flutter. He could see a symbol on her cape; a symbol with a bow pointed downwards, a broadsword positioned as if it was an arrow, where the string was at where the sword connected the hilt, and with a large bird like shape spreading its wings out and upwards and above the hilt. On her shoulders, the cloak were attached by the white epaulets while behind her ears, little wings that had green gem attached to it, without any way that seems to keeps it from falling. A green and white bodice linked to a gold colored belt, which was seamlessly merged to a long skirt and petticoat that reached to her knees. A pair of long white boots, topped with a green gem of what seems to be a light topaz or some sort of transparent jade, reached down from just below her knees. On her arms were pure white gloves with a green edge to where the opening was, as well as a large gem that adorned the back of the glove on her left land.  
  
"Kasumi?" Ranma asked incredulously and wide eyed. "So it WAS you that I saw?!"  
  
Sighing, Tendo Kasumi walked slowly towards the young man. "How are you, Ranma?"  
  
Looking up and down at her once more, a somewhat tongue-tied Ranma did his classic pose of scratching the back of his head with a forced laugh replied, "Eh heh heh... I'm sorry?"  
  
Shaking her head, Kasumi moved behind the stone pillar Ranma's travel bag was and picked up two bags she was holding when she entered the portal. Walking back to the front, she found that Ranma had already picked up his own pack and was looking at her questioningly.  
  
"It's alright, Ranma. I don't blame you, but I need you to keep this a secret for me." She said, replying to his earlier question.  
  
"Wait... wait a sec!" Ranma exclaimed. "I still don't get what happened, and why you're in that dress."  
  
Kasumi looked down at herself. "I guess it does look something like a dress, but I need you to promise me, on your honor as a man and a martial artist that you won't tell anything to *anyone* without my permission. Not Akane, not ANYONE at all."  
  
Blinking a few times, Ranma looked directly at Kasumi, as if gauging if she was serious. Slowly, he nodded, saying "I promise not to tell anyone about this on my honor as a man and a martial artist... as long as you tell me what this is all about."  
  
Sighing once again, Kasumi slowly rubbed her temples. "I guess that's the best I could expect... Fine, follow me." Without saying anything else, she started walking in a direction, not waiting for Ranma. 


	3. Questions To Be Asked

Rolling Mist, Morning Wind A Ranma/Rayearth Fanfic by Adyen (senranda@yahoo.ca)  
  
There are some things in this chapter that didn't really went smoothly for me. I think I might rewrite this chapter, but for now, here it is!  
  
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"So, where are we?" Ranma asked, slowly trekking his way up a small hill. "I don't think we're in Japan anymore. I've never seen trees like these ones before."  
  
Kasumi smiled at her companion. "This is the world of Cephiro. The portal that we went through transported us into this land." Looking down at herself, she amusedly said, "I guess I really should explain, shouldn't I?"  
  
At Ranma's nod, she started her story. "This all started when I was 15, a bit more than 5 years ago. My class had a field trip to the Tokyo Tower, and coincidently, though now that I think about it, it probably wasn't," both Ranma and Kasumi grinned ruefully at that, having their own run-ins with 'coincidences', "two other classes from different schools were going there as well."  
  
"There, I first met Shidou Hikaru and Ryuuzaki Umi, two of the most important people I'll ever meet. We were just exploring the deck separately, and the moment the three of us were together, we got summoned to this world, told that we have to save Cephiro, and thrust into a battle that we have no idea what we're supposed to do."  
  
As they got to the top of the hill, Kasumi waved her arms forwards and said, "This land is the result of me and my friends' actions. First, saving Cephiro from its defunct Pillar, and then a second time when the land required a new Pillar."  
  
Ranma's breath was caught in his throat as he glazed out upon a large piece of land filled with plant life and animals. There were floating islands in the far distance, moving slowly above a large ocean. Off to one side, he could see a mountain range, and on the other side, there was this large castle that seemed taller than anything there.  
  
"I am the Wind Knight of Cephiro, protector of the skies." Kasumi declared softly, looking out at the view. "This is my land, and my true home."  
  
Ranma, still caught in the natural beauty of Cephiro, did not respond. Kasumi giggled at the look on his face, and said, "We need to be at the castled by sunset. I'll call us a ride."  
  
Holding the hand that had a gem embedded into the gloves, she softly kissed the gem, and turning it around, yelled, "Summon the Sylpheed!"  
  
A beam of green light flew upwards from her gem, and disappeared into the sky. Ranma watched curiously for a moment when he felt something very large approach where they were. He turned to Kasumi to warn her of it, but she smiled reassuringly and glanced up to the sky. Ranma, following her example, looked up to find a small speck approaching them from the direction where Kasumi's beam shot towards.  
  
As it got closer, Ranma can faintly make out the shape of a bird of some sort, but nothing that he's ever seen on his travels. But then again, just because he hasn't seen it doesn't mean it doesn't exist; just look at all the weirdoes he's met since he started living with the Tendos.  
  
The green bird slowly came to a halt in front of Kasumi. 'Huge' does not adequately describe it, but it was the best Ranma could come up with as he looked up, and up, and up, and hitting his own pack with the back of his head.  
  
Kasumi giggled again at the scene, and introduced the beast. "This is Sylpheed. Climb aboard, and she'll take us to the Castle."  
  
Showing the adaptively that is centered to his life, Ranma took less than thirty seconds of contemplating whether it was safe and jumped onto Sylpheed's back. "How long will it take?" He asked as he found himself a comfortable position on the bird's back.  
  
"Oh, not long." Kasumi cryptically replied as Sylpheed suddenly launched itself into the air, nearly dislodging Ranma, and with its large wings, started pumping massive amount of air under it to propelled itself forward.  
  
If Ranma was timing it, he would have realized that it took exactly 2 minutes and 28 seconds to reach the castle that was more than 50 km away. But, since he was concentrating on holding to Sylpheed for his dear life, he didn't notice.  
  
As the large bird slowly landed on top of the castle, Ranma noticed that there were three 'pillars' to the castle; the right on in blue, the one they're on in green, and the middle one was red. Perhaps there's a reason for that, but Ranma was more interested in once again feeling a solid floor beneath him. Aerial combat school or not, the human body is not designed to stay in the air without any way of staying up itself nor without any warning, moving over 50 kms within three minutes.  
  
"Come on, Ranma. I'd like you to meet my friends." Kasumi's voice came from behind him. Glancing backwards, he noticed that Sylpheed was now eating some kind of fruits from a nearby halter while Kasumi was standing in front of what seems to be some sort of elevator. Except that there's nothing underneath holding her up.  
  
Sensing his hesitation, Kasumi laughed brightly and said, "Don't worry. This is just this Tower's method of transportation. Trust me, you won't fall down."  
  
She smiled just so innocently that Ranma had no choice but to believe her. In fact, she was still smiling like that when he took his first step and fell straight down the chute for nearly 10 feet before suddenly stopping in mid-air.  
  
Kasumi's laugh rung musically as she slowly descended on her plane of air and caught up to Ranma. "You should have seen your face!" She laughed as they went down together, Ranma glaring at this new side of the eldest Tendo daughter that he has never seen before.  
  
Regaining her decorum, Kasumi apologized. "I'm sorry I had to do that, Ranma, but I had to make you understand that Cephiro is very different from Nerima, and I'm also a different person here. I may have to make decisions that may shock you, and you may find that I act differently to the same choices I have back in Nermia. There are reasons for that, but let's talk about it when we actually have ground beneath our feet, shall we?"  
  
Ranma said nothing but crossed his arms and ignored Kasumi's laughing eyes. Of course, this did nothing but to make her suppress her laughter harder, but at least he made an effort to show his displeasure.  
  
When they finally reached the bottom, they were met with a green haired young man. Kasumi nodded to him and greeted him with, "Prince Ferio." Ranma stood behind Kasumi and glanced curiously at the young man in front of her. For some reason, this Ferio reminds Ranma of himself.  
  
"My lady." Ferio said as he took her right hand and kissed the back of the glove. "I'm glad to see you again. The Pillar and Water Knight has already arrived and is waiting for you."  
  
Kasumi blushed. "Prince Ferio, I've told you that such formalities are not required."  
  
Smiling, Ferio let go of her hands and said, "Ah, but you're the one who started it. I've told you many times not to call me 'Prince Ferio'. Just Ferio would be fine."  
  
Ranma felt uncomfortable standing there. It was obvious that Kasumi knew this person quite well.  
  
"And who's that young man behind you, my dear Wind Knight?" Ferio asked with amusement laid in his voice. "A lover, perhaps?"  
  
Blushing more furiously, Kasumi shook her head franticly. "NO! I mean, this is my sister's fiancée, Saotome Ranma. Ranma, meet Prince Ferio, brother to the previous Pillar of Cephiro."  
  
"Ummm... Hi?" Ranma said, not really sure how he's supposed to act.  
  
Seeing his confusion, Ferio laughed and said, "Don't worry about it. Just call me Ferio, since I don't consider myself to be any sort of prince anyways." He held his hands out and Ranma shook it, evaluating this person in front of him as a potential opponent.  
  
"Pleased to meet ya." Ranma said, letting go. "So, can anyone tell me what's going on? Kasumi here isn't speaking, and I'm still confused as to what's happening."  
  
"Sure, sure." Ferio said, glancing at the Wind Knight. "Why don't I show you around the palace and I'll explain some things about Cephiro while the lovely lady here goes to reunite with her friends?"  
  
Ranma glanced at Kasumi, and with her nod, said, "Sure." Ferio nodded to Kasumi and lead Ranma down the hallway, while Kasumi waved them goodbyes.  
  
"Oh, Ranma?"  
  
"Yes Kasumi?" He asked, turning back.  
  
"Please don't eat anything that you didn't bring. It's not that there'd be anything wrong with the food, but there might be some unforeseen complications if you did." Kasumi cryptically said. She then turned her head to Ferio, "I don't want Ranma to gain the 'Seed', and it's probably dangerous for him to do so, considering."  
  
"As you command." Ferio said with a flourish. "Come on Ranma, I'll show you the museum first."  
  
Kasumi's giggle from his response could be still heard as they turned a corner and went deeper into the palace. Ranma merely shook his head in confusion. 


	4. A Little History

Rolling Mist, Morning Wind A Ranma/Rayearth Fanfic by Adyen (senranda@yahoo.ca)  
  
Did anyone get the Sylpheed comment? I'm sorry, but I just couldn't help myself especially after seeing the Summer Special again! Mahoromatic. If you didn't know what I was talking about, I suggest you watch it, cause it's a really good show, though I didn't like the last episode much.  
  
Chapter 3: A Little History  
  
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"So, Ranma." Ferio asked. "Anything you want to know specifically, or should I just give you the Tour?"  
  
Ranma had a confused look on his face as he noticed how the interior looked like. "What's this place made of anyways? I think that's marble, but I don't think marble changes color in different lighting..."  
  
"Ah... Observent." Ferio commented, clearing his throat and trying to sound like Clef (Read: Wise and All-Knowing). "Well, the palace was originally created by the combined Will of survivors during the period we call 'The Time of Loss'." Ferio raised his hand to forestall any questions about it as he continued, "The 'Time of Loss' is what we describe the time after Cephiro loses its Pillar, and when the land crumbles due to the lost of the Pillar's Will to sustain it. During the last 'Time of Loss', before Hikaru returned to pick up the mantle, the people of Cephiro gathered here, and with the guidance of Guru Clef, our Arch-Magi, created this castle to protect what remains of Cephiro and await for someone who can become the Pillar.  
  
"The Castle itself is divided into five parts. The three pillars that you saw from outside each belong to one of the Magic Knights. The red center one is our Pillar and Fire Knight's; the blue one is the Water Knight's; and the green one is the Wind Knights. The residential area, which is the area connecting the three pillars, has enough room for visitors and those that stay here most of the time, like Guru Clef and I. Finally, there's the actual Palace, which is the area outmost of the Castle. The Palace is self-sustaining through the Will that created it, with a large garden and water running though the back. All social functions, such as receiving off-world guests and such, are done there, normally."  
  
Ranma slowly digested all that was said, but by the time Ferio got to talking about the Castle, he was already looking for something to distract him. They had, while walking, entered the outmost edge of the residential area and he noticed a little girl off to the side, peeking at them, and at his pack curiously. Feeling curious himself, he snuck off to where the girl is, and with a grin, took his pack off to show her one of the little trinkets that he had hooked to the side. It was actually a walking stick that he had carved out for steep mountain climbing that wasn't long enough to touch the ground, but provided some support when going uphill, especially when muddy. The little girl saw it as a magic staff much like Clef's, and reached out to grab it.  
  
Ranma amusedly gave her the staff, and watched as she held it with wide-eyed wonder, feeling the smooth edges and a perfect length for her size. Ranma suddenly had a flashback of Cologne, but shook it off as soon as it came. Looking back at the girl, he noticed that she was holding a cookie for him, as if giving thanks to his gift. He smiled, took the cookie, and ruffled the little girl's hair before flipping it into the air, and swallowing it in one bite just to show off.  
  
He then got up and waved goodbye to the little girl, who was still looking at him wide-eyed and ran to catch up to Ferio, who had just finished explaining whom Clef is.  
  
"So, anything you don't understand?" Ferio asked, turning to where Ranma was, then turned over to his opposite side to look at where Ranma is.  
  
"What's this 'Will' thing you keep talking about?" Ranma asked, curious. "I understand 'Willpower', but this certainly can't be made from 'ki'. It's not possible!"  
  
Ferio chuckled. "Well, I don't know what your 'ki' is, but here in Cephiro, those that has lived here affect how the world is, especially after our Pillar spread the Seed."  
  
"Seed?" Ranma asked, getting the mental image of someone throwing little plant seeds into the land and watching it grow into trees and stuff.  
  
"Guru Clef calls it the 'Seed of Will', but what it actually does is allow the people of Cephiro to sustain the land they know. Where there's people, the land they live on is sustained by their Will, and our Pillar only has to sustain places where there's no intelligent life at all, allowing her to not suffer from the same problems as our previous Pillar. In fact, she's pretty much on vacation since she became our Pillar, as it only requires very little of her Will to sustain places that needs to be sustained by her." Ferio chuckled at the thought.  
  
"So, what's Will?" Ranma asked, feeling a bit annoyed at the fact that it wasn't answered.  
  
"Oh, sorry." Ferio replied. They were now entering the Palace area, shown by the more flamboyant decorations on the walls. "There isn't a very good way to actually describe it, but the best answer anyone has is that it's like what you call 'Willpower'. The ability to wish hard and constantly to affect something around you, I guess, is the best answer I could come up with. Even the Pillar herself doesn't completely understand it, but she just calls it as Willpower and accept it as that. The castle was created like that, and magic is used through the focusing of Will as well."  
  
Ranma's eyes lit up at the mention of magic. "You people know magic? Can you cure curses?"  
  
Ferio scratches his hair as if thinking on a hard problem. "Well, actually, only those who Accepted the Gift of Magic from either Guru Clef or the Pillar can perform straight magic. I can create magic-like effects to attack with, but that's just mainly skill. The only people I know that can actually use magic are the Magic Knights, Clef, Ascot, Caldina, and Lantis. But if you're trying to remove curses, I think Clef would be the person to ask." Ferio carefully skipped over Kasumi's name, knowing that she has her reasons for not helping Ranma.  
  
Ranma mulled over what he was told. He'll have to ask Kasumi if he could see this 'Clef' person later, maybe after the tour. In the meantime, he could feel something nagging at the back of his mind, but can't seem to bring it up to the front.  
  
"Come on, Ranma. I'll show you the museum, if I can find it."  
  
"What do you mean, 'if I can find it'?" Ranma asked.  
  
Chuckling, Ferio explained. "The museum shows things that happen from the time the Magic Knights arrived to the new Pillar. However, Hikaru is often embarrassed by the things in there, and keeps hiding it from everyone else by moving it around in the castle, though she doesn't outright destroy it because she does appreciate that we made it in her honor."  
  
"Ah." Ranma said, as if he had a clue what that's really about.  
  
They explored the castled for the next half hour before finding it on the far side of the large garden Ferio mentioned. He told Ranma that it was the main source of food they had during the 'Time of Loss', and not to touch anything because Kasumi probably has a dinner already in making for them.  
  
Opening the small doors, they entered a large room with pictures of Hikaru, Umi, and Kasumi in different armors, mock creations of their swords, more pictures to explain who and what happened in the past. Ferio was still explaining the whole mess between Eagle, Lantis, and Hikaru when someone else entered the museum.  
  
She was dressed mainly in white and red, having blond hair and brown eyes. She looked around and spotted Ferio with Ranma, who had just noticed her entrance. For a second, Ranma thought that he could see a hint of anger within her, but when he looked again, the only thing on her face was a cheerful smile. He shrugged it off as a play of light.  
  
"Ah! Hey Ferio. Who's that besides you?" The woman asked. Ranma looked closer and recognized her as Presia, the Master Smith of Cephiro.  
  
Ferio confirmed his guess by saying, "Presia. This is Ranma, a friend of Kasumi's. Ranma, this is Presia, Master Smith of Cephiro." They walked over to where she was to continue the introductions. "She's been given the task of searching for this museum each time our dear Pillar changes its location."  
  
Chuckling slightly, Ranma took out his hands and said, "Pleased to meet ya."  
  
Shaking it, Presia replied, grinning, "Same. So, what brings you here to our world? You Kasumi's lover?"  
  
If Ranma had a drink, he would have spit it all over her face. "Why does everyone ask that question? You asked it, he asked it. Heck, I'm starting to expect that the next person I get introduced to will ask that as well."  
  
Ferio and Presia shared a laugh. "May be. Why don't we go around and see if that happens?" Ferio suggested as they exited the museum. Presia lingered a moment, glancing at the picture that hung in to the left of the Pillar's picture near the center: a picture of the Master Smith and Master Mage together. 


	5. Sighs, Groans, and Oops

Rolling Mist, Morning Wind A Ranma/Rayearth Fanfic by Adyen (senranda@yahoo.ca)  
  
I have received one of the weirdest reviews ever asking if Lantis and Hikaru met yet. I don't mean to sound rude, but the MKR season has ended, story-wise, for about 5 to 10 years (to be explain in future chapters, though Kasumi already said so herself). There will be things different, as Kasumi certainly isn't Fuu, but they will be mentioned in future episodes.  
  
Chapter 4: Sighs, Groans, and Oops.  
  
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To Ranma's embarrassment and chagrin, everyone he was introduced to *did*, in fact, ask if he's Kasumi's lover/boyfriend. He quickly learned that she had turned down every suitor, so they thought that she had someone on her home world.  
  
"Maybe she does care about Doctor Tofu." Ranma thought idly as he stretched slightly in one of the gardens Ferio and him were going to spar in.  
  
It all started when he introduced himself as a Master of his Art to some woman with a weird hair color. Someone got the bright idea of him fighting against Ferio and seeing who would win, and Ranma wasn't able to prevent his foot getting into his mouth.  
  
So here they were, in a garden where there were little plant life and a large water fountain in the middle of the field. He glanced nervously at the water, once again angry that his father had cursed him into turning into a girl. Over his training, he kept thinking that if only he didn't turn into a girl, a lot of his problems wouldn't exist.  
  
However, he can't let that distract him. Ferio had already told him he could do spell like effects with his skills. Well, he's not the only one that can do that, and it would be a nice surprise to save up.  
  
"Ready?" Ferio asks, taking his sword out. If he used anything else, it would be meaningless.  
  
"Whenever you are." Ranma neutrally replied, taking his favourite stance-less stance. Sometimes, even masters fall for this trick, but from the look on Ferio, it doesn't seem like it'll work.  
  
Then suddenly he felt his opponent move. He bent backwards, performing a back flip while trying to kick the sword into the air, but he was too slow to hit. Pushing up with his arms, he dodged the flat of the blade that came from Ferio completing a full circle and aiming for a smash, as well as setting himself up to multiple counters.  
  
Rolling in midair, Ranma landed on his feet, smiling and quickly dashed towards Ferio, aiming to enter his guard. With a sword that large, once he got inside, it shouldn't be that hard to knock him out.  
  
However, he was surprised when Ferio flipped the large sword on his side and change reversed the swipe, forcing Ranma to jump to avoid it. He changed his attack to a flying kick, which his opponent dodged by using the momentum from the sword to pull his body. Ranma quickly tried to follow, but was forced back when he realized that Ferio did not let the momentum dissipate, instead using it so he'd be facing his opponent, and return to a guard position.  
  
"Not bad." Ranma said, impressed at the speed the large sword was being wielded. All that had at most taken only ten seconds.  
  
"You're not bad yourself." Ferio replied, smiling in response. "Only a few people could fight me at my speed."  
  
"Heh." Ranma said, rubbing his nose. "You haven't seen anything yet." With that, he dashed towards Ferio with his fastest speed, intending to finish it as soon as possible. Ferio replied with a straight thrust, which he dodged so quickly that it left an afterimage for nearly a second before he struck with one of the special attacks he learned in the Yama-sen-ken scroll.  
  
A loud explosion could be heard where Ranma struck Ferio's chest plate. The prince was propelled back and through a thin tree before crashing into an older one that didn't break. Ranma's fists were smoking as he flung it around in pain, underestimating how hard the plate was. "Owwww... HA! Yama-sen-ken special attack: Houkai Yama Ken (Mountain Breaking Fist)!"  
  
From where he was, Ranma could see Ferio's chest plate had cracked, but the damage was less than he thought. He had already pushed the attack to his personal limit, where it should have broke through the entire plate and maybe broken a few bones, but it doesn't seem like it dealt that much damage. Where he punched, the entire plate was shattered and was falling out, revealing a hole the size of his fist. However, it would seem that it absorbed the majority of his attack as Ferio shook his head and got back up, a grimace on his face.  
  
"I see I underestimated you." He said, looking down at the growing hole in his armor. He slowly walked back to where they were fighting and said, "Let's try again." He lifted his sword in an overhead position, with the tip facing Ranma. Once again, Ranma was surprised at the apparent strength of Ferio as being able to actually hold the large sword up in the air in one hand must be tough.  
  
Ranma hid a frown. There wasn't a lot combative skills in the Umi-sen- ken, and those that he did learn, was either overly destructive in a spar or completely useless unless against naked flesh. And judging by the damage he dealt on the armor, it doesn't seem like his normal attacks would deal much. The Yama-sen-ken was completely too destructive to the environment they're fighting in, and he only managed to learn three attacks from that scroll, including the Mountain Breaking Fist. However, one thing that the sen-ken scrolls taught him was how to refine his ki, so maybe this is a chance to test how much he learnt in an actual battle...  
  
Seeing that Ranma wasn't going to move first, Ferio dashed forwards, and turned his blade with the flat side facing down. When he noticed Ranma was about to counter his attack, he changed his grip on the sword and struck down with the flat first, yelling, "Pressure Sword!"  
  
A wave of air pressure rushed towards Ranma from the blade, creating a wall of wind that rushed towards him. From his training in the Hiryu Shoten Ha, he could *see* the air pressure coming towards him and with a jump backwards into the air, he gathered his ki in front of his cupped hand, forming it into a large bullet shape, and yelled out his trademark attack, "Moko Takabisha!"  
  
Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see specks of energy gathering in his ki attack. His eyes widened as he saw a swirl of white within his normally orange attack, and suddenly he realized that being in Cephiro must have done something to his ki when he was blasted backwards violently from the unexpected recoil. However, he managed to change the direction of where his attack was heading, so that it shot off harmlessly into the air and through the green and red pillars. Unfortunately, the recoil from the attack and his change in direction also caused him to fly off in a different direction, landing him straight into the fountain.  
  
Shaking his head clear of the water, he could see Ferio quickly moving towards him to check if he's alright. Ranma flipped some of his hair out of his eyes when he suddenly noticed something. Looking down at himself, he found that he could actually see straight to his feet without something blocking it. In fact, he was so surprised that he looked up at Ferio before fainting altogether as his body finally realized he used up more ki than he had been ready to use. 


	6. Darkling Wakes

Rolling Mist, Morning Wind A Ranma/Rayearth Fanfic by Adyen (senranda@yahoo.ca)  
  
I knew that my previous chapter was going to raise some eyebrows, but I, being the idiot I was, didn't mention this in the previous chapter:  
  
About the Umi/Yame-senken: I personally do NOT believe Genma would give out his real techniques to anyone, hence why Ranma *stole* the scrolls from him; whereas, if you remember the whole thing with that Umi/Yame-senken, Ryu actually HAS a scroll from Genma already.  
  
Also, there's a duel meaning in the Japanese term 'sen-ken'. It could be explained as '1000 fists', or 'God fist'. Or, as a reviewer pointed out, it could also be an animal pun (though I didn't know that, since I only know limited about of Japanese). We also saw a lot of weird attacks in the series, so it isn't much weirder if Ranma adapted Genma's attacks to his own use and his knowledge of the Art. He kept the 'name' as Umi/Yama-'sen- ken', but he choose the other meaning for the kanji. Oddly fitting for Ranma's ego, no? ^_^  
  
And don't you just think Asian names for attacks are cooler than English ones? Of course, understanding both Chinese and Japanese enough to actually 'hear' them, I'd have to say yes. ^_^  
  
This is a very... weird/dark chapter in this fic, I think. Especially near the end, it shows how much certain people love their home and the people within them. The scary thing is, after writing RMMW for this long, I can start to visualize the scene and exactly what and why they say what they say.  
  
Chapter 5: Darkling Wakes  
  
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When Ranma regained consciousness (from 'an unexpected nap'), he looked up to find Kasumi sitting near him and a near splitting image of his girl side if she was older (he made a note to check if what he thought he saw before... napping, was real) telling her that he's awake.  
  
Instinctively holding his head to check for lumps, he looked into Kasumi's eyes and asked, "What happened?"  
  
A hand held Kasumi's shoulder and Ranma turned his head to find Ferio leaning towards him. "How do you feel? You suddenly fainted after releasing that large ball of energy and falling into the fountain."  
  
Bristling at Ferio's choice of word, Ranma instinctively look at himself, double checking that he is indeed male. He made an internal check of himself, feeling his ki and finding it completely out of alignment to what it's supposed to be, he answered, "Rotten. I don't know what happened, but that was NOT what was supposed to happen."  
  
Kasumi cut in at this point. Glancing at the redhead, she asked, "Ranma, did you eat anything on your tour with Prince Ferio?"  
  
He was about to deny it when he suddenly remembered the little girl and her cookie. Blushing, he rubbed the back of his head as he stammered out, while trying not to get the girl in trouble, "Well... I found this cookie somewhere..." he trailed off, seeing that Kasumi had covered her eyes and was looking down at the floor.  
  
The red-head crossed his bed and hugged Kasumi, saying reassuring things to her while Ferio looked helplessly at the scene. Ranma could hear Kasumi saying things like "I leave him for one moment and...", "I should have know better...", and "Is it so much to ask?"  
  
Kasumi sighed and looked up at Ranma, saying, "I can't leave you a single moment alone, can I? Hikaru told me that you had the Seed within you, but I needed you to confirm it."  
  
Ranma conjured up the plant seed image again. "Seed? What do you mean?"  
  
Hikaru stepped in at this point. "You see, when I became Pillar, I realized that things had to change if the tragedies of the past were to not be repeated." She glanced at Ferio for a moment, but he just smiled and nodded. "So, I made it that any food created within Cephiro, using ingredients created or collected here, would carry a magical seed that would allow the people here to sustain Cephiro on their own. Though there were a few side effects, all in all, it worked out and I don't have to spend all my time praying for the safety of Cephiro." She stuck out her tongue in embarrassment. "You could say that I didn't want to spend all my time sitting in a pond of water and doing nothing else but praying."  
  
Kasumi giggled while Ferio just grinned more, but Ranma saw that Hikaru wanted to lighten up the mood. Nodding, he asked, "So, what does it mean?"  
  
Turning serious again, Hikaru said, "It means, you now carry a piece of Cephiro within you; a land where your Will rules Cephiro and where Cephiro owns your Will. No matter where you go, or where you live the rest of your life, Cephiro is your home now and forever. You will not age unless you wish to, nor will you die of any sickness, but if you do get sick, it will be reflected back on Cephiro. Your worse nightmares may become alive here, yet your sweetest dreams will flourish as well. And from what I heard from Kasumi, you have a very dark nightmare indeed."  
  
Ranma instinctively flinched, just thinking about what Hikaru is talking about.  
  
"Ranma." Kasumi said, trying to cheer him up. "For some reason, your curse has been removed. The best either I or Guru Clef could tell, your Will dictated that you are male, and so you *are* male. However, we can't be sure because neither of us has ever studied curses like that." Seeing Ranma look around, she added, "Clef is currently checking the 'viewing orb' to find out if what we fear will appear. Please, rest for a while and stay with Prince Ferio. Afterwards, you can continue your sparing if you wish. I'll contact you two if we find anything."  
  
Seeing Kasumi about to leave, Ranma exclaimed, "Wait! What do you mean, what you fear will appear? Anything I help with?"  
  
Kasumi was in mid-turn when she stopped, and turned back to him. Hikaru had a hand on her shoulder, giving reassuring support to the woman. Calmly, as if she was trying to hold on to something in a torrent of winds, she said, "Ranma, what is your deepest fear? One that has driven you to do the utmost you can to avoid it, even if it's next to impossible?"  
  
Seeing Ranma flinch was enough for her. "Yes Ranma. I'm talking about the Neko-Ken. We fear that there will be a physical manifestation of the Neko-Ken out there, a manifestation of your fears and anger during training, and after. All the dark thoughts and emotions that you ever had tied to that single techniques, all unbound and roaming free in Cephiro, doing who knows what." Looking directly into the young man's eyes, she mentally tried to soften up what she is about to say, but as Wind Knight of Cephiro, it is very hard to forgive the young man who may very well cause much strife and danger to her homeland.  
  
"We may be able to stop it for a while, maybe send it back to the dark recesses of your mind, but in the end, only you can defeat it as you both gave birth to it, and give strength to it." Kasumi said in a chilling voice, yet barely managing to keep her face calm. "I have never blamed you for anything back 'home', but if one single life is lost because of you..."  
  
She turned and walked out of the room, keeping her composure far enough that Ranma cannot see her or hear her anymore. Hikaru turned a worried eye at the shattered young man sitting on the bed before chasing after her friend of many years, trying to reassure her that what she feared will not happen. 


	7. Deterdamnation

Rolling Mist, Morning Wind A Ranma/Rayearth Fanfic by Adyen (senranda@yahoo.ca)  
  
Yes, that's the name of the chapter. It's not spelt wrong (though it isn't a real word), so don't break your internet viewing program trying to make sure if you read right.  
  
I still can't think of a good way to end this chapter, as I want to keep them short so if I wish, I can stick chapters together later.  
  
Chapter 6: Deterdamnation  
  
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Ferio mentally sighed in relief that it wasn't *him* that Kasumi was angry at. He can admit that it's petty to see someone else suffer under Kasumi, but she has a VERY large temper under her calm exterior, and after seeing her take out her frustrations with that large sword of HER'S... Well, he never want to experience it himself.  
  
However, even though he's relieved that it wasn't aimed at him, he could still help the young man who felt the tips of Kasumi's verbal lances. Though it must be hard for him, having to hear THAT from KASUMI of all people. Having known her for many years, Ferio knew that she's often the most reserved of the group, but when she spoke, everyone listened. She was the big sister of the group, the one who always cared for everyone, friends or foe alike.  
  
Realizing that he's getting lost in his thoughts, Ferio looked down at Ranma to find that his hands were clenched and he was mumbling something to himself. Ferio started to get alarmed when he noticed that his hands were tearing off the parts of the blanket he's holding on, and starting to draw blood though his nails.  
  
"Ranma." Ferio tried to get the pigtailed martial artist's attention. "Ranma! RANMA!"  
  
Snapping out of his own thoughts, Ranma angrily yelled, "WHAT?!"  
  
Ferio jumped back at the anger in Ranma's voice. "Please! Calm down. You're starting to hurt yourself."  
  
"Calm down?" Ranma asked, a slightly hysterical tone creeping into his voice. "CALM DOWN!? HOW CAN I CALM DOWN KNOWING THAT SOMETHING MY STUPID FATHER DID TO ME MAY RIGHT NOW BE KILLING INNOCENTS OFF SOME PLACE IN CEPHIRO?!"  
  
Ferio sweated. "That's only the worse case scenario, Ranma. It might not happen, so please, just calm down. Breath in, breath out; Breath in, breath out..."  
  
Ranma allowed himself to do as directed; tapping into the Soul of Ice to sooth his emotions (somewhere out in Cephiro, a random snowstorm suddenly started over a bunch of startled citizens). "But, Kasumi... She was *ANGRY* at me! It has to be bad for *KASUMI* to be angry at me."  
  
Still trying to reassure the young man, Ferio said, "She's just doing her job. As Wind Knight, she watches over the citizens of Cephiro and finds out if they have any problems or trouble. They're more than just people to her, they're like her siblings, or even children that she's never have, even more than those in your previous home. Just as it is the Water Knight's jurisdiction... Job, is to hunt for any dangerous monsters that show up and the Fire Knight is the Pillar, it is just part who they are. She probably has nothing against you personally, because if she does, you'd know it immediately. Now, repeat after me, 'It may not happen, it may not happen...'"  
  
"It may not happen. It MAY not happen." Ranma repeated twice before shaking his head in frustration. "AH hell. Knowing my luck, it will happen, and at the most inconvenient time as well. Forget that. I'm going to find it."  
  
Ferio blinked, not seeing how the 'possibility' of some cat like manifestation connected with Ranma knowing it will happening and searching it out instead of waiting for the others to find it first.  
  
"Where's my pack?" Ranma asked, looking around.  
  
Ferio mutely pointed at a closet, which Ranma opened to find his travel pack. He checked what was inside before nodding to himself and putting it on his back.  
  
"Ranma?" Ferio asked, "How are you going to face it? From all that I heard, it's *your* manifestation of an all consuming fear. It's not likely you can even get close to it without being scared away."  
  
Ranma was silent for a moment, but Ferio could see the young man shivering. Most likely he was imagining himself facing his worse fear and found himself lacking.  
  
"I... have to." Ranma said, trying to steel himself with the Soul of Ice (the snowstorm has upgraded into a full blown blizzard). "I brought IT with me into this land, and now it's loose. This is my responsibility, so I'll fix it."  
  
Ferio watched as Ranma walked towards the door, still determined to go after his greatest fear. "Ranma, wait." He said, walking over to the young man. "Talk to Guru Clef first. He might have something that can help you. I suggest talking to Presia as well, since some monsters that are born from the darkness of men that cannot be fought off by flesh alone. Some of them are even acidic to the human body."  
  
Ranma stopped at the door, considering what the prince is telling him. "Fine. Where's that 'viewing orb' thingy that Kasumi mentioned?"  
  
"I'll lead you to it." Ferio said in relief, glad that at least he managed to stall Ranma's departure. Maybe Clef will talk some sense into him...  
  
As the pair walked towards where Kasumi said Clef was, Ranma thought about what Kasumi said to him. While it is true that he feared 'those things', he never felt any anger or hatred whenever waking up from it. Heck, he never felt anything other than the feeling of waking up after having a nice nap. Maybe Kasumi's wrong, but he's never known Kasumi to say anything she wasn't sure of.  
  
He mentally reaffirmed his promise. He will defeat the neko-ken, not only because he must, but because he can't let anyone else suffer for his own decisions. This problem, for once, was his own making and he intended to see it through the end.  
  
Ranma looked up at the sound of knocking. In front of him was a large door that seemed fit for Taro's cursed form instead of people. He vaguely noticed as a male voice told them to enter as the large doors opened inwards by themselves. Inside was a large U shaped table, and on the far end was a seat that looked somewhat like a throne. There were currently around ten people in there, all sitting around the U shaped table, and in the middle was a white haired... the best Ranma could come up with was 'midget', holding up a large staff.  
  
"Ah, Prince Ferio." The white haired man greeted. "And this is Ranma, I presume?"  
  
Not knowing how to respond, Ranma simply nodded.  
  
"Ranma here wants to go out and look for his... problem." Ferio delicately said, knowing that both sides hold a stubborn person. "I was thinking perhaps you have something that could help him with his decision."  
  
For a moment, both mage and martial artist was silent. One was assessing the young man up, while the other was mentally daring the midget to stop him.  
  
"I'll let you go under a few conditions." Clef eventually said, causing Ranma's eyebrows to burrow and Ferio to grimace. "First, you'll keep in contact at all times." The master mage searched around his robes for a moment before bring out a clear crystal the size of Ranma's fists and tossed it to him. "This will allow you to contact either me or the Magic Knights. Just hold it in front of you and say whoever you wish to speak with. You can also use it to contact anyone else, but they won't be able to hear you, speak with you, or see you."  
  
Catching the crystal, Ranma placed it inside a pocket in his pack. One day, he's going to learn how Mousse does his Hidden Weapons trick, and then...  
  
"Secondly, that you join the Guard." Clef continued. Seeing Ranma's questioning glance, he said, "The Guard is the Water Knight's elite group of monster hunters under her direct command. Ferio here is one of her Commanders who takes are of the area round the castle, so he's always stationed here."  
  
"And if I didn't know better, I would think they did it so they can keep me here." Ferio grumbled, clearly *do* knowing better, but unable to do anything about it.  
  
Clef merely smiled at him and turned back to Ranma. "I'll suggest to Lady Umi that you be put on revolving patrol so you can move as you like around Cephiro, and I think we can skip the training as well..." He glanced to Ferio, who merely grinned back. "Yes, I think we can skip that. Please, head over to her pillar and visit Presia while you are there. You'll need to pick up some things that all of the Guard has."  
  
Ranma saw no problems with him joining something that hunts down monsters, and said so. However... "But can I leave whenever I want?" he asked, not too sure if he's willing to make a long term commitment with something he doesn't know about other than the basics.  
  
Clef and Ferio blinked. Clef looked at the prince and shrugged, passing the metaphorical ball back to him.  
  
"Ummm... I've never actually known anyone to quit." Ferio said thoughtfully. "But I guess there's nothing preventing anyone from leaving the Guard, we just don't want to since we're here to protect our home."  
  
Nodding thoughtfully, Ranma allowed himself to be led out of the room and towards the blue tower belonging to the Water Knight. He thought back to his own problem with his Ki, and thought, 'Maybe I should get some training while I'm at it...' 


	8. Beginnings

Rolling Mist, Morning Wind A Ranma/Rayearth Fanfic by Adyen (senrandayahoo.ca)  
  
Whoot! Finally continuing this... Gotta promise myself to keep writing...  
  
You know what? After losing all my notes, I have to reorder everything that happens between here and the ending of the story. I know I had a very interesting idea, but it just won't be the same as the one I'm going to use...  
  
Oh, and I NEED a pre-reader. One who won't mind months, nearly a year of silence from me and suddenly receiving email, or one who can prod me to write via all the chat programs I have.  
  
Chapter 7: Beginnings  
  
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Whereas the interior of Wind Knight's pillar was mainly made out of green or purple stones with the phoenix motif, the Water Knight's pillar was made out of mainly blue and black stones with a dragon motif. Ferio led Ranma to a large door where two men stood at guard, wearing different armors, but each wore the same bracelet: a round circlet around their arms with what seems to be a dragon's head connected to the tail.  
  
Seeing Ranma's questioning look, Ferio explained, "The Water Knight's Guardian Rune God is a dragon. The bracelet identifies them as part of the Water Knight's Guard, as more often than not, we all come with our own armor and weapons."  
  
"And since you're more familiar with your own weapons and armors, it'd be best if you kept them instead of retraining with others." Ranma completed, nodding understandingly.  
  
Ferio nodded to the two at the door and answered, "Exactly. Why waste time retraining people in equipment when we can use what we already know? At most, we give extra training on how to use it, but that's only a matter of skill, not equipment. Which reminds me, do you know how to use other weapons?"  
  
The two at the door had not been idle as they were speaking. One had knocked at the door and entered, while the other one was outside waiting for the other to return.  
  
"But, what if someone just faked one of those bracelets?" Ranma asked, curious how trusting those people were.  
  
Smiling, Ferio gave the guard a questioning look, and was replied with a grin. "Ranma, try to take the bracelet off of the guard."  
  
Grinning slightly, Ranma proceeded to remove the bracelet, but when his hands reached it, all it did was phase through the bracelet as if it was water. Blinking, he tried it a few more times before glancing at the smiling faces of the two, asking, "Ok... magic?"  
  
Ferio nodded. "Magic." He said as the man came back out and telling them to enter.  
  
Thanking the guard, Ferio led Ranma inside to the room that held the Water Knight, letting the young man behind him take a good look around.  
  
The interior of the room was made of mainly blue and black stones as well. The walls were a light shade of sky-blue, while the floor was of a black that seemed purple when light hit upon it. One side of the room was made from what seems to be clear glass, showing a majestic view of Cephiro. In front of that glass was a desk and a chair, with the back rest facing them.  
  
"Lady Umi?" Ferio asked the figure sitting on the chair as it spun slowly to show the figure sitting in it.  
  
Like Kasumi and Hikaru, she was wearing almost uniform like clothing, only with blue instead of green. Her long blue hair streamed off to the side as she got up and looked at Ranma. From her, he could sense a feeling of responsibly and duty as if it was a mirror of himself; a burden that was willing picked up, yet she then found it entitled more than she originally thought it would be.  
  
"You must be Ranma." Umi, the only person this could be, said. "I've heard some of your stories from Kasumi. Please, sit." She gestured at the two chairs in front of the table.  
  
Ranma and Ferio took a seat at the gestured chairs, Ranma awkwardly as he wasn't sure what to make of this, while Ferio smoothly picked up the conversation. "So Lady Umi, how was your little get-together?"  
  
Umi smiled softly and said, "It was fun. Kasumi still makes the best food around. I just wish we could meet more often."  
  
Ranma kept silent, not wishing to intrude. Ferio smiled at the lady Knight and said, "Maybe you should meet over in your world as well as here. It shouldn't be a problem..."  
  
Umi's smile faded slightly. "I wish. Hikaru spends the majority of her time either here or at her dojo, while Kasumi spends most of her time at home, and I live at the other end of Tokyo, managing the business. I barely have enough time as it is to come here, and if it wasn't for the fact that Hikaru set it so that time runs differently when we're here, we wouldn't have time to meet at all!" She then turned to Ranma. "Which brings us to you."  
  
Ranma fidgeted under Umi's piercing stare. "What are you two here for? And don't tell me it's just to visit."  
  
Ferio looked questioningly at Umi. "Didn't Clef tell you we were coming?"  
  
Shaking her head, Umi sat down and said, "No, he didn't. Knowing the midget, he probably forgot or was too busy and never got a chance." The tone was said with a slightly sarcastic edge, but was laced with fondness as well as if they shared a something going way back.  
  
Ferio decided not to comment and just relayed what Clef had said. "So you see, we need you to... initiate Ranma here so he can go off prancing around the countryside."  
  
Ranma made a feeble protest, but understood it was just a joke and smiled himself.  
  
Umi shook her head ruefully and said in a well used tone of voice, "I told you Ferio, Hikaru doesn't want you going out to the countryside, and I agree with her."  
  
Ferio merely sighed and sat silently and they stared at each other for a moment before Umi broke eye contact. "Ranma, could you stand up please?" He did so.  
  
"I organized this Knighthood when we realized that, while Hikaru's plan stabilized Cephiro to a point unheard of before, it also created an outlet to the darker desires of people's heart. Most of us don't act out those desires, and a Cephiro citizen even more unlikely, but it's there and by connecting each person with the land, it allowed those darker intentions to manifest themselves in different forms. The Knights were made to deal with these monsters, and if we're lucky, give the chance for those who created them to deal the final blow.  
  
"Most of them are a monster of one sort or another, as we tend to identify those baser darkness as something other than human; but sometimes, they may look and even act like normal people. We've encountered some that were disguised pretty cleverly before, like that one that pretended to be a homeless waif and after a family took her in, she slowly killed them and... well, realized we needed some way to identify them quickly and clearly.  
  
"That's when Clef, Kasumi, and I created those bracelets using our combined magic. When there is a monster nearby, they'll tell you approximately which direction it is, and if it's right in front of you, you'll know. Once you put on the bracelet, Selece will judge you if you're able, and if you are, it'll stay on until removed. Otherwise, it'll just fall off."  
  
"Selece?" Ranma asked, having not heard of the name before.  
  
Umi merely gave her a mysterious smile before reaching down somewhere and bring out a bracelet that seems to be metal, and said, "Wear this over naked skin. Then twist it around three times if you're sure of your decision."  
  
Ranma did as he was bided to and suddenly found himself in a dark space with nothing at all. "Hello?" He yelled, as if it would help him figure out what just happened.  
  
"Ye shall be judged..." A loud booming voice said from behind him. Ranma slowly turned to look up. And up. And further up at the figure of Selece, the Water Dragon in its full glory. "Prepare thyself."  
  
Ranma boggled at Selece as water ran down its entire length and cover its figure, then slowly shrink unit it was a man sized blob of water holding what seems to be a rapier. Shaking his head slightly, Ranma grinned and cracked his knuckles as he got into a ready stance. "Bring it." 


	9. Rune God

Rolling Mist, Morning Wind A Ranma/Rayearth Fanfic by Adyen (senrandayahoo.ca)  
  
Wow. I'm actually continuing this immediately. I must be sick. :-P  
  
There was one comment that I went back and realized I haven't answered yet. I'm assuming that normally (pre-series), only places like the Forest of Silence has monsters, while the rest of Cephiro is basically calm. Otherwise, we'd see militias around to protect the towns and such. Sure there were the occasional hunter, but they don't stay in one place to defend it, rather they go out and find monsters.  
  
And much thanks to Ian for prereading the chapter. I hope you're still reading this so I can send more chapters to you for prereading! :-P  
  
Chapter 8: Rune God  
  
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Ranma didn't get into any particular stance as he analyzed the opponent. First off, it seemd it was made completely from water, including the weapon; but he wasn't about to make any bets with his own body. Secondly, as the Water Dragon shrunk, it seemed to take on the form of a female, but he didn't look too closely as it was possible that it was a distraction, one that would work quite well with pig-boy.  
  
"You know, maybe we shouldn't fight." Ranma said in a conversational tone. "I don't want to hurt ya, you know."  
  
The water figure didn't reply verbally, but lunged forward with its weapon. Ranma quickly moved off to the side, but the figure compensated and continued its attack, forcing him to dodge with a back-flip. The water figure narrowly avoided a kick in its sword-arm before releasing a stream of water at Ranma, who had recovered by that time and quickly dodged out of the way.  
  
"Well, if you want to play it THAT way..." He muttered as he continued to dodge a second stream of water coming from Selece that nearly hit him. Seeing that it was about to fire yet another stream, Ranma preformed a flying kick to get closer, but it forced him to quickly dodge away upon landing.  
  
Not losing his cool, Ranma continued to attack, but each time, just as he was about to get close enough inside its reach, he was forced back by a rapier strike or some random bit of magic. He soon found out that even though the rapier was made from water, it had the ability to cut him as he once tried to knock the rapier out of the way. Finally, Selece constructed a wall of water to trap Ranma, and perhaps submerge him in it as well. But before it could, Ranma dredged up another technique he learned from his father's scrolls, this time, from the Umi-Sen Ken.  
  
"Kijin Raishu Dan!"  
  
Multiple vacuum blades shot out from his twirling arms and pierced through the wall of water to the other side. Selece managed to jump and avoid most of them, however one of the blades nicked it on the left leg.  
  
Selece suddenly dissolved back into water and Ranma found himself standing in front of Umi and Ferio, holding the bracelet with one hand and the other hand clenched into a fist.  
  
"What. Was THAT?!" Ranma exclaimed as he let go of the bracelet, realizing that it did, indeed, stay on his arm without additional support. Umi was looking at him appraisingly while Ferio was just grinning.  
  
"That, was Selece, one of the Rune Gods. Just think of them as the Guardian Spirits of Cephiro." Umi replied, leaning forwards and positing her left hand to shake Ranma's. "Congratulation, you've passed. Welcome to the Guard."  
  
Ranma numbly shook her hand. Guardian Spirits? If so, why don't they stop the monsters? He was so busy thinking about Selece that he didn't notice Umi wincing and putting more weight on her right side.  
  
"So, where are you going to head first?" Umi asked, sitting back down comfortably in her chair.  
  
Shrugging, Ranma said, "I don't know. I guess I'll just head out and move towards where ever I feel like it. It's supposed to be part of me, right? I should be able to tell roughly where it is." Seeing Umi purse her lips, Ranma added, "Hey, I've done and see some weirder things, so this shouldn't be new."  
  
Umi just leaned back and said, "Well, try to return in a month. If you do, you can leave with the rest of us back to Tokyo, a few seconds after you entered the portal. Otherwise, it'll be a day by day count." Ranma nodded and was about to leave before Umi added, "Oh, don't forget to head to Presia's workshop. She might not be there, but I'm sure there's a few spare packs of the Guard's equipment laying around."  
  
Ferio nodded and lead Ranma out, nodding at the two guards outside the door. Once the door was closed, Umi sighed painfully and brought her left leg up to see a glaring red mark where Ranma's last attack had hit. "Damn... he can sure pack a punch..."  
  
"Only because you wanted to test him yourself." Came the voice of Selece in the back of her mind.  
  
"Oh quiet you."  
  
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When they reached Persia's workshop, they were somewhat surprised to see Kasumi sitting in a chair waiting with a small package beside her.  
  
"Ferio? May I speak with Ranma... alone?" She asked politely, keeping her voice down. Ferio nodded and went off a certain distance so he wouldn't hear what they were saying.  
  
"Kasumi..." Ranma started, but was interrupted by the Wind Knight.  
  
"Ranma." She said in a tone that brooked no arguments. "I'm truly sorry about my earlier outburst, but I hope you understand that it's not really YOU that I'm angry about, but rather how all your problems seem to be connected by your father."  
  
Stunned, Ranma could only nod numbly as Kasumi continued.  
  
"For the last year or so, I've watched you grow from that lonely and desolate person into whom you are today. I know my sisters like you; yes even Nabiki, and I know you return Akane's feelings at least slightly; and frankly, so do I. You're kind, honorable, and reliable when it comes to protecting what's important to you. I should have warned you earlier, but I wasn't sure what would happen if you gained a Seed., and didn't want to try it to find out. So this is partially my fault as well."  
  
Ranma stood stunned at what Kasumi was telling him. He opened his mouth to say something, maybe protest his feelings about Akane, but nothing came out and she continued on, head bowed down slightly.  
  
"As such... I hope to make it up to you by traveling with you. Now, I know it might not be much, but you at least need a guide to tell you about Cephiro and where things are. And no, I understand this is your battle, so I won't interfere. In fact, we can travel by land if you wish."  
  
"Wait a second, Kasumi!" He blurted out. "You don't have to do all that! I'll be fine!"  
  
Shaking her head empathically, Kasumi said, "I have to go out anyways for my rounds, so we can just travel around Cephiro together."  
  
Sighing, Ranma was about to argue against her following him around for his own problem when he heard a slight ripping sound above him, showering him with a torrent of cold water. Having just opened his mouth, he turned and spitted out the water that had ran inside, running his hand up his forehead to push the soaking wet hair away from his eyes and turned back to Kasumi, who was staring at him in amusement.  
  
"It seems like you're still a water magnet!" Kasumi said, chuckling. This time, it was Ranma's turn to stare as he's never seen her chuckle like that.  
  
"I'm so glad I amuse you." Ranma said sarcastically.  
  
"Yes you do, and there's no way you can talk me out of not traveling with you." Kasumi responded with a smile in her eyes, reaching over to one of the shelves to borrow a towel. Ranma merely sighed as he took the towel from her and started wiping himself dry.  
  
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Somewhere, a figure slowly opened her eyes and stretched. She yawned slowly and glanced at the sky, admiring the scenery before looking at herself. She then slowly walked towards a directly, whistling a light tune and imagining how to kill a certain pigtailed boy. 


End file.
